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8:24 a.m. - 2007-05-24
What to say this weekend
Can you see me doing the happy dance a day early? I love a long weekend.

Have I already written that Andy was asked to do a patriotic reading at the end of the Memorial day parade? I've been searching for a bit and came up with a few. Feel free to vote on it. The first is below.

And my Brother Said Nothing
Amir Gilboa

My brother came back from the field
dressed in gray.
And I was afraid that
my dream might prove false, so at once
I began to count his wounds.
And my brother said nothing
Then I rummaged in the pockets of the trench-coat and found a field-dressing, stained and dry. _And on a frayed postcard, her name
beneath a picture of poppies.
And my brother said nothing.
Then I undid the pack
and took out his belongings, memory by memory.
Hurrah, my brother, my brother, the hero,
now I've found your decorations!
Hurrah, my brother, my brother, the hero,
I shall proudly hymn your name!
And my brother said nothing.
And my brother said nothing.

And his blood was crying out from the ground.

-----

Too anti war?

The otherone is a bit longer:

The Unknown Soldier by John Governale

If a miracle should happen
And these dry old bones
Should be filled with new marrow
And regain their strength
And my flesh, long since melted away
Should return,
And I should find myself, dressed in new clothes,
Standing beside this grave
And if I should be told that
Starting right now
I would be allowed to live the life
That I willingly, yet unwillingly, gave up,
What would I do?

I've had a long time to think about this.

I would, of course, leave this forgotten hillside
And return to the USA.

And when the boat docked
And I disembarked,
I would do what millions of other soldiers have done:
I would kneel down
And kiss the ground.

And I would say
"The next time my bones are laid to rest,
They are going to rest in this soil."

I would go back to my home town.

Even if there was no one left there
Who remembered me,
Even if the house I lived in was gone,
Even if the town had changed so much
That I didn't even recognize it,
It wouldn't matter.
I would go there and walk along the streets
And I would say,
"This is my town."

I would go to a restaurant
And order a meal.
And when the waitress said,
"Hello. How are you today?"
I would say, "Ma'am, I am doing just fine."
And when I finished my meal
And she asked would I like some desert
I would listen to her name all the different kinds of pie
And then, just so I could hear the names again,
And just so I could hear the sound of her voice,
I would make her say them all a second time.
Then I would pick apple.

There is a long list of things
I would do and see.
I've had a lot of time to think about this.

But there are three things in particular I'm sure I would do.
I would do something with my life
That would bless the lives of children.
This sounds funny
Because before, I didn't much like kids.
I thought they were a nuisance.
But I've been thinking about this for a long time
And I believe I would want to do something
That would help children feel safer and happier.

The second thing I would do is vote.
Even if the election was the very next day,
Even if I didn't know who was running,
Even if the issues were things I'd never heard of,
It wouldn't matter.
I would go vote.
I would go in the booth
And look at the ballot
And beside each office I would check off a name.
And I would say to the names,
"I'm sorry. I don't know who you are.
And I don't know what you stand for.
I picked you because
I liked the sound of your names
Or because you represent the party my daddy belonged to.

But I have given you my sacred vote.
And if you win, I'm going to be watching you.
If you don't do a good job
You and I are going to meet next election day in this same place
And then I won't like the sound of your names."

When I put my ballot
In the ballot box
The lady there would say to me,
"Sir, are you okay?"
And I would wipe the tears from my face
And I would say, "Yes, ma'am. I'm fine."

The third thing I would do is,
On Memorial day
If my home town has a ceremony of some kind
With maybe a school band playing patriotic songs
And people giving patriot speeches,
I would go to that.
I would put my hand over my heart
And I would think about my buddies.

Memorial Day.
If I were alive,
Every year I would be there.

If I were alive,
I would over-tip a waitress.

If I were alive,
I would go out of my way to be kind to children.

If I were alive,
No matter what, I would always vote.


-----

Or he could just read the Gettysburg address like everyone else does.

Even though it is still spring, we're starting to get summer smells. Almost every night, I can smell someone's steak or chicken, its grill far away in the neighborhood.

I'm also getting the smell of my Grandma's back yard. She and my grandpa lived in Brooklyn and had a postage stamp sized yard, filled with cement and ivy mostly, with a few rose bushes, some mint that eventually took over, and I think some lily of the valley. Imagine those smells with a bit of diesel mixed in, and that was their backyard smell. I've been getting that lately.

Andy continues with his stories of injustice on the playground. His neighborfriend (who is a girl) keeps chasing him around, then standing her ground when he asks her to stop and telling him that he can't tell her what to do.

And of course, Andy does not see the continued futility of telling on her to the playground teacher/monitor who likely rolls her eyes after his daily reporting.

We've tried to explain that he should just ignore this behavior or laugh. I've even mentioned that this is her way of getting his attention, that she probably really likes him and doesn't know how to express that yet. Hmmmm.

Spouse made bluefish, broccoli with lemon zest and the taboulleh. Very tasty. I followed it with a popsicle chaser and a WW sundae cup.

I'm only working a half (6 hour) day today because I was supposed to see the dermatologist and find out what has to be burned or cut off my face and arms, but the doctor called and has decided to extend his weekend, so I've been cancelled. But I'm still taking the half sick day, so the afternoon is full of possibilities.

And for now, that's all I got.

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